Tea Plant | OtterKnow Kids Encyclopedia

What Is the Tea Plant?

The tea plant, known scientifically as Camellia sinensis, is an evergreen shrub that gives us the world’s most popular beverage after water. Originally from the forests of southern China and Southeast Asia, the tea plant has shiny, dark green leaves and small white flowers with yellow centers. Left to grow wild, the plant can become a tree over 30 feet tall, but on tea farms it is pruned into low, flat-topped bushes about waist height for easy picking. Every cup of true tea, whether it is green, black, white, or oolong, comes from the leaves of this single plant species.

Picking Tea Leaves

Tea harvesting is a delicate art that requires skill and speed. Only the top two leaves and the unopened bud at the tip of each branch are plucked, because these youngest leaves contain the most flavor and nutrients. In many tea-growing regions, skilled workers pick the leaves entirely by hand, selecting each shoot with a quick pinch of the fingers. A single experienced tea picker can harvest about 30 to 35 kilograms of fresh leaves in a day, though it takes about four kilograms of fresh leaves to make just one kilogram of finished tea. The best teas are still hand-picked, while lower-grade teas may be harvested by machine.

How Processing Creates Different Teas

The amazing thing about tea is that green tea, black tea, white tea, and oolong tea all come from the exact same plant. The difference between them lies entirely in how the leaves are processed after picking. White tea is barely processed at all, simply dried in the sun to preserve its delicate flavor. Green tea leaves are quickly heated to prevent oxidation, keeping them green and fresh-tasting. Oolong tea is partially oxidized, while black tea leaves are fully oxidized, giving them a dark color and strong, bold flavor. This process of oxidation is similar to how a sliced apple turns brown when left out in the air.

The Legend and History of Tea

According to Chinese legend, tea was discovered by Emperor Shen Nong around 2737 BCE when leaves from a wild tea tree blew into his pot of boiling water. Whether or not this story is true, we know that people in China have been drinking tea for at least 5,000 years. Tea drinking spread to Japan, Korea, and eventually to Europe, where it became enormously popular in the 1600s and 1700s. In 1773, American colonists protested British taxes by dumping tea into Boston Harbor in an event known as the Boston Tea Party, which helped spark the American Revolution. Tea remains deeply woven into the cultures and daily routines of people around the world.

Tea Around the World Today

Today, tea is grown in over 50 countries, with China, India, Kenya, and Sri Lanka being the largest producers. More than three billion cups of tea are consumed worldwide every single day. Different cultures have developed their own unique tea traditions, from the elaborate Japanese tea ceremony to the sweet mint tea of Morocco to the milky chai of India. Tea contains caffeine and beneficial compounds called antioxidants, which scientists believe may help protect the body against certain diseases. The global tea industry provides employment for millions of people, especially women, who make up a large portion of tea plantation workers.